Friday, 16 May 2014

Authorities tracked him down to a home where he and his wife, Jean, had been staying with longtime friendsAuthorities said ailing radio host Casey Kasem was on vacation — not in danger — when they found him in Washington state this week.

A Los Angeles judge on Monday expressed concerns about his whereabouts and safety amid a dispute between his wife and children from another marriage.

But the sheriff’s office in Kitsap County, west of Seattle, tracked him down the next day. He was at a home where he and his wife, Jean, had been staying with longtime friends, Deputy Scott Wilson said.

“We know he has an affliction, but he was alert, upright, dressed, groomed and cognizant of what was going on,” Wilson said. “We see a lot of at-risk adults and children. This wasn’t anywhere close to being suspicious.”

Kasem, 82, gained fame with his radio music countdown shows, American Top 40 and Casey’s Top 40, and he was the voice of Shaggy in the cartoon Scooby Doo.

His children rejoiced after days of uncertainty.

“We are grateful to the local authorities for finding my dad,” Kasem’s daughter, Kerri Kasem, wrote in a statement. “We are one step closer to bringing him home.”

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Daniel S. Murphy on Monday ordered adult protective services and court investigators to try to locate Kasem after an attorney for his wife said he did not know where Kasem was.

Apparently unaware that he had already been located, the children filed a missing person’s report on Wednesday.

Danny Deraney, a spokesman for three of Kasem’s children, said Thursday the family still had “grave concerns” about his health.

Kerri Kasem’s court filings state her father is suffering from a form of dementia called Lewy Body Disease.

Casey Kasem’s wife of 34 years, Jean, has been in control of his medical care and controlled access to him, blocking three of Kasem’s children from seeing him in recent months, according to court filings.

The judge appointed an independent attorney and doctor to evaluate the radio host, and he scheduled a hearing for June 20 to receive updates on Kasem’s well-being.